The Woman and Her Demon Lover

Symbol Analysis

This one comes and goes fast, but it's a really powerful image. The line calls up feelings of supernatural power, romance and excitement. A waning moon and the spooky chasm all help set a scene that is wilder and more foreign than what we've already seen in the poem.

Line 16: There could be a whole other poem or even a novel in here, built around the image of this wailing woman. We get just a taste of the drama of her story, but it helps to set the mood of this landscape. Check out the way that adding the word "demon" changes and deepens this image. If she was just wailing for a plain old "lover," that would be sad, but not nearly so strange and exciting.